ADVER Sport assess the performances of the Swindon Town players following their 2-0 defeat away at Gillingham.

Matej Kovar: 6

The Town stopper was left stranded for both goals, but came for a few high balls really well and looked a little more confident that in recent games.

Akin Odimayo: 7

He gave Gills left-back Tom O’Connor a torrid time going forward and put in a number of good crosses, but Town’s lack of presence up front meant they often went to waste. Booked.

Taylor Curran: 4

Two fairly noticeable mistakes paved the way for both Gillingham goals. His passing and touch wasn’t great either, so not a good day for Curran in his first league start.

Mathieu Baudry: 8

Considering he has had such a tough time recently, Baudry responded in fine style. He won the majority of the headers, he battled for everything, and he played so well, Gillingham took John Akinde off midway through the second half. As a centre back, there are few better feeling than forcing the big man you’re marking to be substituted.

Jonathan Grounds: 7

Started off at centre back and followed a similar standard of performance as Baudry. Grounds did as well as could be asked of him at left-back too, and his crosses were often handy.

Dion Donohue: 6

Donohue combined well with Jaiyesimi and Payne in the opening half an hour and kept Ryan Jackson quiet at the other end before being subbed due to a hamstring injury. Subbed.

Matt Smith: 7

His delivery into the box from set pieces was either superb or quite poor, but his energy and desire to win the ball back and keep Gillingham penned in was admirable.

Anthony Grant: 7

Considering Grant is wearing a protective boot when he’s not wearing his football ones, it was another top performance from Town’s senior midfielder. His tackling was top notch, and he seems to have learned to rein in his charges across the pitch to shut down one player. Subbed.

Jack Payne: 8

Payne was excellent at both ends of the pitch – the only thing his game was missing was a goal. He defended so well throughout and showed an aggressiveness that has seldom been showcased. In an attacking sense, his footwork was tight and he was unlucky not to score. Subbed.

Diallang Jaiyesimi: 8

Jaiyesimi was Town’s best attacking outlet and he showed he is as strong as an ox on several occasions. The highlight of his game was a storming run in the first half that resulted in Scott Robertson receiving a yellow card for hacking him down. That seemed like the only way to stop Jaiyesimi at times. Again, the only thing missing was a goal.

Tyler Smith: 6

Smith appeared to be slightly off the boil against Gillingham. He was bullied a little bit and missed an absolute sitter in the first half when he headed against the bar. Subbed.

SUBSTITUTES

Dion Conroy: 6

Firstly, I’d just like to say how nice it is to see the club captain back on the pitch. With 14 months out, Conroy was always likely to be a little rusty, and his passing proved as much, but he showed he still has quality and will improve as the games go on.

Harry Parsons: N/A

Came on inside the final 10 minutes.

Jordan Lyden: N/A

Came on inside the final 10 minutes.